As a technology to mount an electronic component on the printed board, there is a SMT (Surface Mount Technology). In the SMT, a printed board having a paste-state solder applied thereon for mounting a SMD (Surface Mount Device) is prepared. Then, the SMD is mounted on the printed board with a chip mounter. Subsequently, the solder is heated and melted in a high-temperature furnace (reflow furnace), and the SMD is welded on the printed board.
As one of technologies for handling the electronic component with the chip mounter, there is a technology to handle the electronic component by attracting the same by a magnetic force with a magnet chuck. However, when using an electromagnet, a magnetic metal material is necessary on the side of the electronic component, so that it lacks general versatility in practical terms.
As another technology to handle the electronic component with the chip mounter, there is a technology to handle the electronic component by attracting the same with a sucking head. The chip mounter employing this technology includes a sucking head which is movable between the position to arrange the printed board and the position to arrange the SMD. A sucking nozzle configured to attract the SMD is provided at a distal end of the sucking head. The chip mounter is able to transport the SMD to a predetermined position on the printed board by causing the attracting nozzle to attract the SMD.
Since many electronic components have a flat surface on a top thereof, it is possible to attract the SMD by the sucking head. In addition, by changing the size of the sucking nozzle according to the size of the electronic component, it covers the electronic components in various sizes, so that the general versatility is secured.
Incidentally, the SMD which is mounted on the printed board by the SMT includes large-sized electronic components such as a DC-DC (Direct Current-Direct Current) converter. When such large-sized SMD is mounted on the printed board with the chip mounter employing the sucking nozzle, if the position of attraction of the sucking nozzle is displaced from a center portion, the component is hard to maintained horizontally, and hence it is difficult to position the sucking nozzle accurately to a predetermined position. Therefore, for the large-sized SMD, it is necessary to provide a flat portion at the center portion thereof for being attracted by the sucking nozzle. In general, a productions design such as to secure a flat space on the center portion of the substrate or to arrange a component having a flat surface on the top thereof at the center of the SMD is desired.
However, due to a constraint in productions design, there arise the following problems.
1) Dead spaces tend to be formed, which hinders downsizing.
2) Optimal arrangement of the component in terms of electricity, cooling property, and structure cannot be achieved, which results in lowering of the function.
If the flat portion is hard to form in the center portion of the SMD, alternative means is desired. For example, a method of causing the SMD to be attracted to a double sucking nozzle (a head having two sucking nozzles) or a method of forming the flat portion by affixing an adhesive tape or the like is contemplated. Such methods have the following problems and hence the general versatility is not expected.
3) The method of causing the SMD to be attracted to the double sucking nozzles requires special manufacturing equipment, and a burden of capital spending is excessive.
4) For the method of forming the flat portion by affixing the adhesive tape or the like, a manner to affix the adhesive tape is difficult. In addition, an adhesive agent remains on the component side after a reflow, so that a number of steps are required for removing the remaining adhesive tape.    [Patent Document 1] Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 56-152243    [Patent Document 2] Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2001-267367